What Is a Wood Lathe?

A wood lathe is a type of machinery, generally used in turning industrial products for ornamental purposes. In a nutshell, a lathe uses a rotation device that spins parallel to the surface, and with the help of different tools, it can create unique cuts and designs with a solid block of material. Lathe tools reformat an object by cutting, drilling, knurling and sanding, providing symmetrically designed products turned on a lathe.From all types of lathe machinery, including the lathes used for pottery or jewelry, the wood lathe is the oldest. And without doubt, the different tools used for wood turning are the most part of the entire lathe machinery. This variety of tools used with wood lathes consists of different chisels, used for creating the unique designs and patterns resulted from wood turning. And the amazing thing about a wood lathe is not the unique designs or patterns, but the fact that it can produce a completely finished work entirely on its own. While most tools employed in industrial production require tools that are separate from the machine to finish the design, a lathe has its chisel tools attached directly to the lathe, allowing it to do all the work at once.To better understand the concept, these wood turning tools of a wood lathe take a solid wood object and turn it into a symmetrical ornament, such as a table or chair leg. With the help of a wood setup, a woodworker will be able to duplicate identical wood parts, so all table or chair legs are the same.Wood turning has a lot of different shapes, styles and designs to offer, possible through a wide range of accessories for wood lathes. And with nowadays' amazing advances in technology and machinery, the accessories are more proficient than ever. The most commonly used tools in wood turning are the gouge, the spear chisel, the skew chisel, the parting chisel and the round-nose chisel.In order to get the best results and products, a woodworker has to know all the different tools used in a wood lathe, and understand their unique characteristics, features and capabilities. Understanding how each tool works is essential for the proper usage of a wood chisel, and the best results come with a lot of practice. For more detailed information, search online for the different types of wood lathe tools, and read about each tool in particular. And remember, practice makes perfect.Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5075880

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Best Wood Lathe for Your Project

The best wood lathe for the job depends on the size of the wood that you will be using for the project. Another consideration for the right lathe to do the wood working is the area that you have to work with a lathe. Different wood chisels can offer some great design abilities to add to your wood working projects.There are three specific sizes for lathes. The pen lathe is for very intricate small refined wood working projects. You would need a pen lathe to do the tiny intricate work that could not be done with a manual tool. A pen lathe would make it possible to turn the wood and handle very refined small details that would not be possible to do otherwise. A mini lathe takes up a little space and is easy to store without taking up a lot of room in your wood working shop or garage.The mini lathe is the next size up. It is used for making spindles and other curved designs. It allows you to work on projects that require curved pieces that require turning and shaping of the wood while it is being worked into a particular piece for a project. The mini lathe is easy to store and can be kept on a shelf in the wood working shop or your garage when not in use saving space for other equipment and tools.The largest size is the floor lathe. It is a machine that sits on the floor and works larger pieces of wood for bigger projects. It is still small compared to other wood working machinery but it does take up more space than the mini lathe or the pen lathe which can be stored on a shelf. The floor lathe in most cases is easily stored.Wood lathes and wood chisels can be found in many sizes, but they all do different things so you may need more then one. Before you purchase do your research, and take a look around your working space. Once you have you can then pick out the perfect lathe for you.

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Choosing A Wood Lathe: Remember The Budget

Buying a wood lathe sounds like a simple proposition. Check the budget, look at the lathes in the budget category, choose the one that seems good and away we go. However, like most things in life, it is not that simple. One of the more difficult things for the beginner or first time buyer, is knowing how to gauge the budget in the first place.Wood lathes are more individual than many other woodworking tools. While there are certainly many models of tools such as table saws, for example, there are certain features expected in particular price ranges and the saws will be fairly uniform in that range. It is expected that one may purchase one, put it in the work shop, and go to work. The wood lathe is a different proposition.While most wood lathes in a given price range will generally be similar in quality this is not always so. A mini lathe will usually be better quality than a full size lathe in the same cost bracket, for instance. Two lathes of the same price may have different mechanisms for controlling speeds and overall quality of the lathe with the more expensive speed controller will likely be less than that of the other machine. It is necessary in the budget to question what is wanted in the lathe for weight, quality of construction, type of speed control and size among other things.All other things being equal among lathes, there is the extra strain on the budget to consider. That table saw will be ready to work right out of the box, but not so for most lathes. The typical wood lathe comes with the basic machine ready to run and with centers and a face plate to hold the wood, but without tools to cut the wood nor any means to keep them sharp. Again in contrast to the table saw that came with a blade that rarely needs sharpening and then by a professional shop, the lathe comes with no tools and no means to sharpen them even though they will need frequent sharpening. It often comes as a surprise to a beginning wood turner that in some circumstances tools need to be sharpened every couple of minutes.So the budget will need to stretch to a set of wood turning tools, a grinder and a set of aluminium oxide wheels at the very least, not to mention sundries like sandpaper and finishes. All of these should be allowed for in the budget before shopping for the wood lathe. It should be noted that a decent set of wood turning tools or a four jaw chuck may each be more expensive than a beginner's wood lathe.It is possible to get started turning wood on a modest budget. Some reasonable planning is necessary but many wood turners have begun on light lathes and used them for many yearsArticle Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5889137

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Making a Pen with Your New Wood Lathe

So you just purchased a wood lathe but do not know what kind of project you should start out with. As soon as the right amount of skill is obtained, beautiful pieces of woodwork can be created with a wood lathe. However, before you get too over your head, it is best to start out with a basic wood turning project. My recommendation would be beginning by carving your very own pen.Pen turning is a common hobby or past time. These homemade pens can make excellent gifts for any event. Pen turning is a fun yet practical project that can help you get a taste of the capabilities of your wood lathe. The following are some tips in preparing your wood for the lathe that will help you make your first wood lathe experience successful.1. Pick an interesting wood blank. One of the great things about pen turning is you can use any sort of wood you want, including scrap pieces from other projects. Pick out a piece of wood with interesting figuring. Be aware that some wood changes appearance with light and air exposure and will begin to look dull with time, such as Papua or Purple Heart wood. If you are not comfortable using a scrap piece of wood there are numerous wood blanks that can be purchased in all sorts of exotic woods.
2. Examine your wood. It is very important that you examine the wood you are using for your pen project. Make sure that your wood is dry and without faults or cracks. Damp and cracked wood will make for a lousy pen, if you can even make one out of that type of wood at all.3. It is better to be oversize than undersized. If you have to choose between an over sized wood blank and an undersized blank, always choose the over sized one. This will give you some leeway just in case you make a mistake.4. Have an idea. As with everything else in life, your pen will turn out better if you have an idea on what you want to create before you start. Decide before using the wood lathe on what type of shape you want your pen to be.5. Mark the wood blank before you cut. It is nice to put a pencil mark across the grain of the wood before you start. This will make it easier to match up the grain pattern after you cut the wood blank.6. Make sure your ends are square. If the ends of your wood blank are not perfectly square before using the wood lathe, there will be possibilities of cracking when the pen is assembled.7. The smaller wood lathe the better. This tip is really just meant to make your life easier. Any wood lathe is suitable for pen turning; however, the smaller the wood lathe the easier your job is.8. Keep it simple the first couple of times. It is tempting to want to do some fun and intricate pen shapes the first couple of times but stick to the basics until you figure out just exactly what it is you are doing.A pen is an easy project that can help you with the beginning possibilities of your new wood lathe. After you conquer creating your own pen, there are several other projects to start with

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Wood Lathes - What to Look For When You Buy Your First One

Most people involved in woodworking for a while are in good shape when they are going to buy their first wood lathe. Many of the things to look for in a wood lathe are the same things one looks for in other woodworking machinery such as quality of finish and heavy material. However, there are some things specially to look for as a wood lathe is different from the other power tools in the typical woodworking shop.First of all, look for a lathe that is built to absorb vibration. Many of today's tools are manufactured of steel or aluminum. Either can be made to have great strength compared to lightness, but either material requires extensive and expensive engineering to absorb vibration. This is an issue because of the way in which wood is treated on the lathe compared to something like a band saw or table saw. In the latter cases wood, generally in the form of uniform boards, is placed on a stable table and fed through a blade. There is little vibration involved assuming the blade is balanced.Wood lathes, on the other hand, hold the wood and turn it at fairly high speeds. Often the wood is rough and unbalanced. This is something like driving an unbalanced tire at highway speeds. Just like the car will rattle and sway, so will the lathe. In the case of the wood lathe, cast iron is the answer and even the lower priced beginner's lathes will have some models with cast iron head and tail stocks. At a little higher price even the ways will be cast iron and it is generally worth it. Many woodturners have begun, however, on a model of lathe that has a single way made of a steel tube and yet with cast iron head and tail stocks. These have worked quite well for many turners.The finish needs to be adequate on the head and tail stock and great on the ways. If the ways are finished properly the tail stock and tool rest will move well and freely. This makes turning a pleasure. On the other hand, a poor finish on the ways make it a pain to move either one and a frustration to a turner.Make sure the head and tail stocks line up. Put a center in each one and bring them together. They should line up both vertically and horizontally. Some lathes will have measures to line up the centers but this is seldom seen in beginner's models.All that is needed now is a good stand. Most beginner's level wood lathes have no stand or a poorly made pressed steel one. Making a solid one out of wood or metal is the best bet in either case.These tips should help in choosing a first wood lathe. Just remember that, like most tools, it is easy to grow out of the first lathe so getting one with a good resale value helps too.

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